The Venture Codex

Participated · Debt Financing · Apr 2014

TrackIf provides an online tracking and intelligent alerting solution that allows transactional sites and mobile apps to add white-labeled product tracking to capture future purchase intent and convert it into revenue using personalized email alerts. The company’s core offering captures signals of purchase intent and triggers tailored email alerts to re-engage shoppers. Customers include top Internet retailers, including the largest home improvement retailer, Neiman Marcus (Last Call), Build.com, Cost Plus World Market, Joie, and others. TrackIf is led by CEO and founder Doug Berg and is based in Minneapolis, with additional offices in San Francisco and New York. In August 2015 the company raised $5M in a Series A financing. As part of that financing, two venture partners joined TrackIf’s board of directors. TrackIf provides a free service that allows users to track things on the web and stay aware of key events such as sales, new listings, job openings or travel deals. The product offers retail site integration so merchants can add branded tools to capture purchase intent, track out-of-stock items, and send new-item alerts, creating a personalized experience for site users. The company is led by founder and CEO Doug Berg and is based in Minneapolis, MN. TrackIf launched in June 2013 and reports more than 350,000 users tracking over 1 million items online. Financially, the company raised an additional $3M in debt funding from venture backers.

Participated · Series A · Mar 2013

Swallow Solutions is a life sciences company with a novel dysphagia treatment platform that includes patented swallowing retraining mouthpieces and devices. Its products and systems were developed by Dr. JoAnne Robbins and her team at the University of Wisconsin. The company intends to commercialize a portfolio of diagnostic and therapeutic devices and to add new products and services. Early trials indicate many patients using Swallow Solutions’ devices can regain all or a significant portion of their ability to swallow effectively. Swallow Solutions cites a national market opportunity on the order of $2.5 billion annually for its retraining devices, driven by more than 18 million U.S. adults (and several million children) affected by swallowing difficulties. The company recently raised capital to support commercialization and expansion.

Led · Equity · Aug 2009

Flex Biomedical, founded in 2007 and led by CEO Sal Braico, is developing innovative treatments for orthopedic diseases. Its lead product, the Flex Polymer™, is a synthetic polymer designed to treat osteoarthritis. The company has said it will use the newly raised funds to continue advancing Flex Polymer toward commercialization. In November 2010 Flex Biomedical received a $244,479 award from the IRS Qualified Therapeutic Discovery Project grant program. The company closed an $866,000 financing round with participation from both new and existing investors. No operating metrics or revenue figures were disclosed in the article. Flex BioMedical is an orthopedic pharmaceutical startup developing a polymer-based joint lubricant intended to reduce pain and increase mobility for osteoarthritis patients. The product is meant to replace hyaluronic acid injection treatments, which can provide relief for six months to a year but sometimes do not work. The company relocated from Boston to Madison, Wisconsin after securing public and private funding. It received a $150,000 loan from Wisconsin’s Technology Venture Fund and $835,000 in private investment. Flex has filed with the SEC seeking to raise up to $1.25 million in private equity. The company hopes to enter clinical trials on the product no later than 2011.